Censorship and art do not mix

BEIRUT: Three artists from the MENA region received international recognition for their work to advance freedom of expression this month, including Lebanese playwright Lucien Bourjeily.

The other artists nominated for Index on Censorships Freedom of Expression Awards are Egyptian musician Mayam Mahmoud, Turkish playwright and writer Meltem Arikan and British playwright David Cecil nominated for his work fighting homophobia in Uganda.

The idea is to award people across different categories who have ... contributed to promoting freedom of expression, IOCs Head of Arts Julia Farrington told The Daily Star by telephone, particularly in areas where there is hostility to freedom of expression and where personal courage and creativity and commitment is required in order to see their work through.

IOC launched its Freedom of Expression Awards 14 years ago. More than 300 international figures working in journalism, digital activism, campaigning/advocacy and the arts have been nominated for the 2014 awards. Four nominees were shortlisted for the arts category. The winners will be announced March 20 in London.

The proliferation of regional candidates this year may reflect, in part, particularly restrictive censorship laws. Its true there are constraints on freedom of expression in the Middle East, Farrington conceded, and I think artists are at the forefront of that, but it is also a coincidence ... We try for geographic spread and gender spread across all the awards and I think there was just a cluster of very strong candidates [from the region] this year.

In her music, Mahmoud (who made it to the semifinals of Arabs Got Talent last autumn) tackles such issues as gender inequality and sexual harassment, expressing her views via male-dominated rap.

In the wake of Turkeys Gezi Park protests last year, Turkish politicians accused Arikan of inciting demonstrations with her play Mi Minor. A hate campaign launched on social media sites left her fearing for her life.

Arikans 2004 novel Stop Hurting My Flesh, about women traumatized by rape and incest, had previously been banned for, among other things, arousing sexual desire and using a feminist approach.

Bourjeily has worked extensively with NGOs and theater organizations championing artistic freedom in Lebanon and abroad. He is known for introducing improvisational and immersive theater practices in Beirut, challenging the countrys censorship laws which stipulate that scripts be approved by General Securitys censorship bureau before being staged.

The playwright made headlines in Lebanon last year with his interactive play Will it Pass or Not? The title reiterates the question Lebanese playwrights and filmmakers ask themselves before, during and after they write a script.

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Censorship and art do not mix